52 posts on what matters to me

Good food vs. Katie’s wallet: July summary

Progress at last! My last post on good food vs. wallet I set a goal of spending $100 less in July than in June on groceries. Here’s the breakdown on 2010 grocery expenses, including farmers market:

What kind of greens are these?

Jan: $707

Feb: $818

Mar: $621

Apr: $793

May: $551

Jun: $724

July: $573

Last month I took advantage of some of my staples being on sale and stocked up, which paid off in the long run, since I didn’t need to buy those items again in July. The scrap veggie stock went a long way too – I made two batches during July, and used both on a delicious black-eyed peas recipe for our meatless Mondays, with brown rice. The peas were enough for dinner and multiple lunches each time I made them.

Having a good store of staple item on hand has also made meal planning easier. We have multiple meal possibilities available each night, and as I use up the obvious things, I can see what I need/want to purchase from the farmer’s market to supplement and enhance the menu. This way I don’t just wander through buying everything I see (those were the days!).

All in all, my wallet is feeling less pain and we’re still eating fresh, local, seasonal healthy food!